Cocteau Twins Stepchildren Snowbird Woo Radiohead Members for Debut

Stream "Porcelain," the latest from Simon Raymonde and new bandmate Stephanie Dosen

Cocteau Twins multi-instrumentalist Simon Raymonde has teamed with singer-songwriter Stephanie Dosen to form a new project dubbed Snowbird. The duo’s debut album, moon, arrives in January via Raymonde’s Bella Union label and boasts an impressive guest list. Among the contributors: Radiohead members Ed O’Brien and Phil Selway, Midlake’s Eric Pulido and McKenzie Smith, Lanterns on the Lake’s Paul Gregory, and tunesmith Jonathan Wilson.

Raymonde and Dosen — or, as you might like to call them, Cocteau Head and the Radio Twins — have shared a track from the upcoming LP, the aptly named “Porcelain.” Raymonde said of Snowbird in a statement, “It would be a little odd if it didn’t remind people of Cocteau Twins,” and he’s right. The piano-led ballad doesn’t trade in the lush dream-pop of his former outfit, but the wintry “Porcelain” does possess a delicate kind of beauty, thanks in no small part to the haunting female vocals in the forefront.

Speaking of moon’s many collaborators, Raymonde said, “Having them add their magic to the record was a thrill, but really, I think this is very much Stephanie’s record. She’s a really special singer and I feel the simplicity of my music was the perfect backdrop for her stories and her incredible vocal arrangements.” He added, “Stephanie was the first singer I had worked with since Elizabeth [Fraser of Cocteau Twins] that I had a real musical empathy with. She could do anything.”